ANOTHER wasted opportunity - that’s a Saltburn businessman’s view after the tourism season passed with the town’s controversial seafront building still not fully open.

Harry Meckiffe is so furious at an apparent lack of progress with the Saltburn Lower Promenade building, he has even withheld rent from Redcar and Cleveland Council, claiming the terms of his lease aren’t being followed.

The council says it is doing all it can to realise the building’s full potential.

In 2004, the Gazette told of Mr Meckiffe’s plans for a kite and extreme sports equipment shop in one of the building’s commercial units.

More than three years on, his business is standing firm, but a restaurant and community room are still not open and another tourist season has come and gone.

“It’s been squandered opportunity after squandered opportunity. I’m staggered they can do so little with so much,” said Mr Meckiffe, who is also a personal fitness trainer.

“It costs more to maintain this way than if they got the place running properly.

“You’ve got a building here that looks derelict half the time. One visitor thought it was a water treatment works.

“At no point in its history have all the shutters been up and the building fully open.”

Mr Meckiffe chairs the Saltburn Foreshore Committee, set up to ensure the foreshore isn’t ignored when it comes to investment and facilities.

He added: “We’re very disappointed with what’s been achieved. Where’s the restaurant? Basically we’ve got an ice cream hatch.

“I just want the council to open this building, improve seafront maintenance and put some effort into it.”

Mr Meckiffe has contacted the Audit Commission over the lack of progress - a constant complaint since the building, originally costing £570,000, was mooted by the now defunct Saltburn Improvement Company in the late 1990s.

Construction work was completed in 2002 but since then, funding and legal wrangles and even a water leak from the adjacent hillside have hampered progress.

The council’s Cabinet member for culture, leisure and tourism, Councillor Sheelagh Clarke, sympathised but said the authority was “doing all within its power to progress the situation so businesses within the building can thrive commercially”.

She explained the restaurant was originally given a domestic gas supply “inadequate for the purpose of opening a restaurant”. British Gas is now due to fit the correct supply on October 20.

The restaurant operator is also seeking planning permission to alter the unit’s façade.

She said the building would be cleaned and painted during the first week in October - work which will hopefully help secure a commercial operator for the currently vacant third commercial unit.